Additional information
by John Dickson Carr (Author), Tom Mead (Introduction by)
They say that Lord Mantling's mansion is haunted -- at least, one room of it is. Known as the Red Widow's Chamber, the now-sealed quarters once housed the wife of a guillotine operator in the French Revolution, and, since her passing, have been host to a century of unsolved horrors, including the death of a man in 1802, the death of a child in 1895, and a number of mysterious mortalities in the years in between.
Now, in 1935, eight men and women join at the manor for a sinister experiment to determine the truth behind the haunting once and for all: they each draw a card, and whoever pulls the Ace of Spades must spend a night in that terrifying room. But the challenge turns fatal when the man selected for the task is found poisoned the next morning when the doors are opened. The locked room was guarded all night, so nobody could have entered or escaped; what's more, the deadly toxin could only have entered through a break in the skin, but no wounds were discovered on the body.
Is this evidence, at last, of a nefarious spirit at work, or of a diabolical and ingenious killer? Only Sir Henry Merrivale, called in to take note of the night's proceedings, will be able to examine the clues and deduce the truth.
Author Biography
John Dickson Carr (1906-1977) was one of the greatest writers of the American Golden Age mystery, and one of the only American authors to be included in England's legendary Detection Club. Though he was born and died in the United States, Carr began his writing career while living in England, where he remained for nearly twenty years. Under his own name and various pseudonyms, he wrote more than seventy novels and numerous short stories, and is best known today for his locked-room mysteries. His beloved series character, Dr. Gideon Fell, was based on author G. K. Chesterton and appeared in twenty-four novels.
Tom Mead is an author, translator, and aficionado of Golden Age crime fiction. He is the creator of the Joseph Spector locked room mystery series, which has been translated into ten languages (and counting), and is soon to be adapted for the screen. His debut novel, Death and the Conjuror, was nominated for the Capital Crime Award for Debut Novel of the Year and the Historical Writers' Association Debut Crown. It was also named one of the best mysteries of the year by The Guardian and Publishers Weekly. Its sequel, The Murder Wheel, was named one of the Best Traditional Mysteries of 2023 by Crimereads and the Daily Telegraph, as well as nominated for a Capital Crime Award and longlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger Award. His third novel, Cabaret Macabre was published in August 2024, along with a collection of short stories, The Indian Rope Trick and Other Violent Entertainments, in November 2024.
